Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to identify and discuss the key policy challenges for OECD countries both at macro and micro level to develop and use their intellectual assets in order to obtain economic returns. Design/methodology/approach -The paper takes the approach of econometrics studies to gauge the impact of intellectual assets on national accounts and a stocktake of all existing initiatives, frameworks and guidelines relating to extra-financial corporate reporting on intellectual assets. Findings -The paper provides macro data on the contribution of investments in intellectual assets to productivity and economic growth in OECD countries and presents the challenges in terms of corporate reporting and corporate governance that result from the increasing importance of intellectual assets for growth and competitiveness. It then provides a stock-take of existing guidelines and frameworks in OECD countries that encourage companies to report on their intellectual assets and their strategies to create value. Practical implications -The paper provides policy recommendations to better understand the role of intellectual assets, improve their contribution to economic growth, and to enhance information on intellectual assets and the diffusion of good practices. Originality/value -The value of the paper is that it contributes to mitigating the difficulties to assess the contribution of intellectual assets on national accounts that is crucial to obtain an accurate picture of economic growth, downturns and investments. It also contributes to the debate on how to overcome the limits of accounting standards to recognize intellectual assets so as to improve companies' valuation and lower their cost of capital.

A series of Mn III saltmen dimers, [Mn 2 (5-Rsaltmen) 2 (X) 2 ](A) 2n (saltmen 2− = N,N′-(1,1,2,2-tetramethylethylene)bis(salicylideneiminate); R = H, Cl, Br, MeO, Me; X = H 2 O, ReO 4 − , NO 3 − , N 3 − , NCS − , A − = ClO 4 − , PF 6 − , CF 3 SO 3− for X = H 2 O) were synthesized and structurally and magnetically investigated to understand the correlation between their intradimer ferromagnetic (FM) interaction and single-molecule magnet (SMM) behavior. All complexes had a similar di-μ-phenolate-bridged out-of-plane dimer structure but displayed different bridging Mn−O ph * distances depending on the R substituents of the saltmen ligand and axial X ligand. Magnetic susceptibility studies revealed intradimer FM coupling (J Mn−Mn* ), resulting in an S T = 4 ground state for all dimers. However, the magnitude of FM coupling strongly depended on R and X. J Mn−Mn* increased with decreasing Mn−O ph * distance but decreased with decreasing Mn−X distance with a relation of H 2 O ≈ ReO 4 − > NO 3 − > N 3 − ≈ NCS − with a linear trend for R = H, Cl, Me but not for R = Br, MeO. Theoretical investigations revealed that a larger orbital overlap stabilized a FM spin configuration through competition between the orbital degeneracy and on-site Coulomb repulsion of out-of-phase and in-phase orbitals. Most dimers showed typical SMM behavior. The dimers with larger J Mn−Mn* tended to have higher blocking temperatures.

JT03259374 STI Working Paper SeriesThe Working Paper series of the OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry is designed to make available to a wider readership selected studies prepared by staff in the Directorate or by outside consultants working on OECD projects. The papers included in the series cover a broad range of issues, of both a technical and policy-analytical nature, in the areas of work of the DSTI. The Working Papers are generally available only in their original language -English or French -with a summary in the other.Comments on the papers are invited, and should be sent to the Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry, OECD, 2 rue André-Pascal, 75775 Paris Cedex 16, France.The opinions expressed in these papers are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the OECD or of the governments of its member countries. ABSTRACTEfforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions which are linked to the global climate system such as the Kyoto Protocol might fail, if emission-restricted states relocate their carbon-intensive production activities to non-restricted countries where the primary production factors depend on more GHG-intensive sources. Such a relocation process and increased 'carbon trade' appear to be contrary to the GHG reductions envisioned in international agreements. This study addresses the issue of carbon embodiments in trade using internationally-comparable OECD data sources (Input-Output, Bilateral Goods Trade and CO 2 emissions) for 41 countries/regions by 17 industries. Simulation results under base case scenarios for the mid-1990s and the early 2000s suggest that "trade deficits" of CO 2 emissions are observed in 21 OECD countries in the early 2000s and that for 16 countries, the magnitude of the trade deficit increased in the late 1990s. While a third (860 Mt CO 2 ) of the global increase in production-based emissions took place within the non-OECD economies in the late 1990s, more than half of the consumption-based emission (1550 Mt CO 2 ) is still attributable to OECD consumption. The sensitivity simulations imply that an increase in global trade intensity has an increasing impact on embodied emissions while technology transfers from carbon-intensive countries to high carbon-intensive countries reduce global emissions and carbon trade gaps.